It is well known in the art to place inserts into coolers for foodstuffs for providing drainage of liquid away from foodstuffs placed therein. Such inserts, which are often removable, are typically placed with a first, bottom surface thereof situated on or near a lower surface of the interior of the cooler in which the foodstuffs are placed. The foodstuffs usually rest or are placed on a second, top surface of the insert along with a coolant, typically a frozen liquid, such as water frozen into ice. The coolant cools the foodstuffs by absorbing heat therefrom and maintains them in a cool state. However, when the coolant is a frozen liquid, such as water frozen into ice, the coolant is liquefied, i.e. melted into a liquid state, as it absorbs the heat from the foodstuffs. The liquid, i.e. coolant melted into liquid state, then drains, drawn by gravitational force, towards the lower surface of the cooler and passes through draining apertures in the insert into a space between the first, bottom surface of the insert and the lower surface of the interior of the cooler. In addition, the draining apertures of insert also provide drainage of liquids other than melted coolant, for example liquid that accidentally escapes from containers in the cooler or liquid formed by condensation during cooling of foodstuffs. This draining of liquid into the space below the insert separates the liquid from the foodstuffs and impedes substantial impregnation of the foodstuffs by the liquid which may cause, among other things, undesirable changes in texture or flavor of the foodstuffs. For some inserts, the coolant is placed in the space between the lower surface of the interior and the first, bottom surface of the insert, thus completely separating the coolant, whether in liquid or solid form, from the foodstuffs. The draining apertures permit heat to be absorbed from foodstuffs by the coolant to provide cooling of the foodstuffs while nonetheless allowing drainage of other liquids into space as described above.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,636,524 issued to Woods et al. on Jun. 10, 1997, discloses an insert shaped as an inverted shallow basket with a plurality of openings as draining apertures through which liquid, i.e. water, and air may easily pass. The insert, when placed into a cooler, separates the foodstuffs and coolant, i.e. water frozen into ice, away from liquid, i.e. ice melted into water, which flows through the draining apertures into the space below the insert. The insert thereby prevents contamination of the foodstuffs from contamination by liquid. Disadvantageously, however, the draining apertures are, as shown in the drawings, formed in the shape of squares having internal sharp corners. Such sharp corners tend to accumulate dirt and are difficult to clean manually. In addition, as the insert is intended to snugly engage the cooler walls of the interior or be placed on legs therein for support in the cooler, a user will have to exercise caution to ensure the right size of insert is purchased for use in the cooler. Further, should a user purchase such an insert for a cooler and then replace the cooler with a smaller cooler, the insert may, depending on its size relative to the new, smaller cooler, be unusable therewith.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,574,983 issued to Smith et al. on Jun. 10, 2003 teaches a cooler having inserts, i.e. trays, fixedly attached to the interior. A lower insert has (draining) apertures thereon and defines a space between the lower surface of the interior and the portion of the interior in which foodstuffs are stored. Coolant can be placed with the foodstuffs above the insert or be completely separated therefrom by placement below the lower insert. Cool air from the coolant, when situated within the space below the insert, flows upwardly through draining apertures to cool foodstuffs. In turn, liquid formed by melting of coolant or liquid otherwise released in the portion where foodstuffs are placed, drains through draining apertures into space below insert. Unfortunately, the draining apertures, as shown in the drawings, also have sharp internal corners, and thus the insert suffers from the same drawbacks for cleaning as those described above for the insert disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,636,524. In addition, since the insert taught by U.S. Pat. No. 6,574,983 is hingedly mounted in the cooler, it may not be easily removable, which will further complicate cleaning thereof. The use of hinges for mounting the insert also signifies that an insert, as taught in the reference, installed in a larger cooler may not be easily adaptable for use in a smaller cooler.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,405,557 issued to DeCastro et al. on Jun. 18, 2002 describes an insert having a first, bottom surface and a second, top surface. The first surface has a plurality of draining apertures which extend through insert to second surface upon which foodstuffs and coolant are placed. A side perimeter extending downwardly away from second surface supports insert on lower surface of interior of cooler for creating space between lower surface and second surface. Liquid from the portion of cooler where foodstuffs and coolant are placed flows through draining apertures into space. The draining apertures, as shown, are circular, without sharp internal corners, which facilitates somewhat their cleaning. However, when cleaning the insert manually, it may nevertheless be difficult to engage a human finger in a partially bent position therein, possibly with a cleaning instrument on the finger, to clean the interior walls forming the draining apertures. In addition, the use of circular shapes for the draining apertures requires more draining apertures, and thus more effort for cleaning, than would more elongate shapes. Further, the side perimeter may provide insufficient support for foodstuffs placed on the center of the insert and may cause the insert to sag or break, possibly exposing the foodstuffs to the liquid in the space thereunder. An optional support grill disclosed in the reference may circumvent this issue, but the grill is set out in a matrix like format which introduces a large additional amount of surfaces-which must be cleaned, thus making cleaning of the insert, especially manually, more difficult. Also, the insert is designed to be of fixed dimension. Thus, an insert purchased for a larger cooler cannot necessarily be adapted for use in a smaller cooler.
Accordingly, there is a need for an improved insert that provides facilitated cleaning and greater adaptability of size for use with coolers of different sizes.